The invention relates to a nozzle holder and a device for extruding dough materials using the nozzle holder.
Baking articles, doughs and confectionery are often extruded by squeezing a material under pressure through a nozzle arrangement to form a strand. As such, the strand may be carried away by a conveyor belt or cut into short sections. The outer shape of the strand, in particular its circumferential shape, is dependent upon the nozzle arrangement.
A machine is known from DE-A-30 30 757 for forming dough rings of edible dough, in which dough strands run over the edge of a first conveyor belt into a supply station. Here, as a result of their inherent weight the dough strands pass in each case into an upper end of a tube element, which is pivotably mounted by means of two ball joints. The dough strands emerge at the lower ends of the tube elements and are taken up by a second conveyor belt. The lower ends of the tube elements are movable by means of a cross bar. In this machine, it is not possible to supply a material under pressure to the tube elements. A blade, which is mounted independently of the cross bar, is used for cutting the dough strands. The blade may only be used when the cross bar with the lower ends of the tube elements is located at a specific point along its path of movement.
A device is known from DE-A-1 036 783 for manufacturing shapes from flowable dough material, in which the dough material is supplied via hoses to nozzles, which are secured to a retaining strip and are displaceable together with said retaining strip. During the movement of the nozzles the hoses are deformed, so that their volume and therefore the pressure of the dough material existing within them alters.
The device is therefore only suitable under certain conditions for producing dough products in which the dough needs to emerge from the nozzle at a precisely constant pressure.
A device is known from FR-A-808 285 for extruding dough and similar materials, in which a rotary nozzle comprises an eccentrically arranged opening, which can be supplied with a dough material under pressure through a feed duct. Only simple geometric shapes can be produced using rotary nozzles of this type.
Devices are known from EP-A-0 168 255 and EP-A-0 177 175 for co-extruding two materials, which extrude an inner material through a nozzle and an outer material with grainy particles contained therein through a funnel enclosing the nozzle, the materials being combined to form a strand. At its mouth, the funnel comprises sharp edges, so that the grainy particles in the outer material reach the surface. The mouth of the funnel may be toothed, so that the particles project from the surface. The composite strand is carried away by a conveyor belt in this manner, a baking article can be produced from two materials having a linear, longitudinal shape with grainy particles on the surface.
A disadvantage of the above-mentioned devices is that it is only possible to use said devices for manufacturing baking articles which extend in one direction, i.e. in the direction in which the strand is carried away. It is not possible to produce baking articles which extend in a plane or whose strands cross. Baking articles of this type are, for example, Chelsea buns, rings and pretzels.
It is the object of the invention to provide a nozzle holder and a device for extruding dough materials, by means of which baking articles and confectionery which extend in a plane can be manufactured with a high degree of shape accuracy.
This object is attained according to the invention by a nozzle holder having the features described below.
Although the nozzle according to the invention is pivotable, the connecting duct according to the inventionxe2x80x94in contrast to the hoses known from DE-A-30 30 757xe2x80x94represents a non-elastic connection between the stationary feed duct and the nozzle. This connection is produced by already existing components and therefore has a particularly simple construction.
The nozzle holder is advantageously further developed in that the nozzle comprises a tube element, whose first end is pivotably mounted and whose second end comprises the mouth. As a result of the tube element, the degree of deflection of the nozzle during pivoting is increased, whilst precise guidance of the nozzle is ensured.
The mouth of the nozzle is guided in a particularly precise manner in that the pivoting device comprises a rod with a ball mounted therein. A pivoting device of this type can be easily deaned.
It is provided in an advantageous embodiment that the nozzle holder comprises two nozzles, which are arranged concentric to one another. Using a nozzle holder of this type, it is also possible to produce baking articles which have a filling and a casing and extend in a plane. It is therefore possible to manufacture filled Chelsea buns or filled pretzels, for example.
A nozzle holder according to the invention is advantageously used in a device for extruding, a plurality of nozzle holders being particularly advantageously arranged adjacent one another and the mouths of the nozzles being pivotable in this case by means of a common pivoting device. In this manner, it is possible to manufacture a plurality of baking articles simultaneously having the same shape. In this respect, the pivoting device only needs to be controlled by a single control system, so that the manufacturing costs of the device are particularly low in relation to Its capacity.
The described device is advantageously developed in that a cutting and/or squeezing device is arranged on the pivoting device. The cutting and/or squeezing device is used for cutting and/or closing the extruded strand. Since the cutting and/or squeezing device is arranged on the pivoting device, it is possible to cut and/or dose the strand in any position of the pivoting device.